The purpose of this research is to gain improved understanding of the physical basis for optical properties related to molecular polarizability, including optical rotation, Rayleigh and Raman scattering, circular intensity differentials, and the Kerr effect. Numerical calculations of these properties will be carried out using classical polarizability theory and various modifications of it. Various naturally occurring optically active molecules are of primary interest, including sugars, steroids, peptides, nucleotides, polysaccharides, polypeptides, and polynucleotides.